Driving Home For Christmas
by jerjonji
Summary: An AU quasi songfic about Kenji's emotional drive home from College for Christmas Break.


All of the Kenshingumi belong to the creative genius of Nobuhiro Watsuki. I just borrowed with love for a short period of time!  
  
Driving Home For Christmas  
By jerjonji  
  
"I'm driving home for Christmas"  
  
The wipers smeared slosh across the windows, and Kenji pulled over at the rest stop to get gas and wash the window. Me and seven million others are driving east for Christmas, and they all stopped to get gas when I did, he thought waiting impatiently for a free pump.  
  
Kenji hated holidays. He hated all holidays, but he especially hated holidays that included gathering with the Kenshingumi for an extended period. He really hated Christmas. It didn't help that it was his birthday as well. The boisterous celebrating and carrying-ons of the clan made him feel more isolated and lonely than if he were in his own apartment, eating Chinese take-out and watching bad action movies, which had been his plan for this Christmas. All he had to do was not answer the phone or check his email for the next month, and he was scott-free. He figured it out Thanksgiving afternoon hunkered down in the movie theater with a monster size bucket of popcorn, a gallon of Coke, and two boxes of Goobers, and a marathon of Kung Fu movies showing.  
  
But he was out-maneuvered the next morning when the phone rang at six o'clock in the morning and he answered it automatically. His voice hoarse to his own ears, "Hello," he rasped.  
  
"Happy Thanksgiving," the cheerful male voice on the other end chimed. Kenji sat up, mentally kicking himself.  
  
"Yahiko," he complained to his guardian. "It's barely six o'clock in the morning here.  
  
Yahiko sounded puzzled, " You're not up? I thought you were training all week, Kenji, and that's why you couldn't come home for Thanksgiving. I wanted to catch you before you left for the dojo."  
  
Out-maneuvered twice in less than thirty seconds, Kenji thought, a new record- even for Yahiko. Kenji yawned. Beaten, he listened to Yahiko's overly cheerful morning voice.  
  
"Did ya' check your account? I put the money in it last week for your traveling expenses home. Want me to make the plane reservations, or do you have time to do it."  
  
Check, and Checkmate, Kenji thought, within a minute. He shook his head, feeling at an unfair advantage by being still half-asleep. "You shouldn't have done that, Yahiko. I'm not coming home for Christmas. I told you that last month. I'm competing in early January in LA."  
  
Relentless, Yahiko continued, "That's why I put the money in your account already. Ojiisan[1] Hiko is flying in to help you prepare for it. We can't find a better trainer than him- even at his age. If you spend two weeks working with him, he'll take off some of those bad habits you've picked up since you've left home."  
  
"Is he training me in Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu[2]?" Kenji asked sharply, half hoping, half-afraid.  
  
"There's a lot he can teach you besides that," Yahiko continued the ancient argument he'd been having with his mentor's son since he'd been left Kenji's guardian five years ago. "For that matter, you haven't been able to beat me yet either using the Kamiya Kasshin-ryu."  
  
"I'm not coming," Kenji said firmly.  
  
There was silence on the other end. Kenji could hear Yahiko counting to control his temper. "Okay, kid. I'll tell Tsubame and the others. Use the money any way you want. Consider it part of your Christmas gift." Kenji heard a loud crash and his young niece crying in the background. "Gotta' go. Kaoru just broke something. Love ya' kid."  
  
Kenji hung up the phone and lay on his back, counting the ceiling panels, trying to go back to sleep.  
  
"Oh, I can't wait to see those faces"  
  
The line at the gas pumps moved slowly. He watched the family in the van in front of him, the kids watching a cartoon in the backseat, presents piled high in the window.  
  
He sighed, thinking about what was facing him at the end of the trip. It wasn't that he didn't love his family; it's just that they weren't a normal family. He was sure he'd convinced Yahiko he wasn't coming, but his guardian wasn't above fighting dirty, if it got the job done.  
  
Less than a week after Yahiko's call, his message light blinked. He was wishing the girl sitting in front of him in Calc 3 would call, so he pushed the button. Curses formed on his lips at the childish message on his phone.  
  
"Hi, Unka Kenji. Mommy said I could call you. I gotta' tell ya' what I want for Christmas, ok?"  
  
His face smiled hearing the sound of his active six-year-old niece. Even though she was named after his mother, she was definitely her own person. He checked his watch. She'd be watching Bear in the Big Blue House about now. His fingers dialed Yahiko's number as if they had a mind of their own.  
  
Kaoru answered instantly, "Hi ya' Unka Kenji." She exclaimed. He could picture her sitting on the barstool, kicking her heels while she talked, her long jet-black hair neatly braided with ribbons tied to the ends swinging with each energetic word.  
  
"How'd you know it -," he started to ask, but she butted in.  
  
"Guess what? I'm gonna' be a sheep Christmas Eve. I was supposed to be an Angel, but I bit Johnny J. Jakes, so now I'm a sheep. I like sheep, don't you? Angels don't bite, but Sheep bite too, don't they? Are you gonna' be there to see me baa? Sheep baa. Wanna' hear my baa? Baaaaaa" She barely took a breath between sentences.  
  
Kenji broke in on the baa's. "Why'd you bite Johnny what's his name, baby?"  
  
She giggled. "Auntie Gumie says it's cuz he's my boyfriend, but that makes Daddy so mad when she says that.  
  
Kenji bet it did. He wished he'd been there when Aunt Megumi talked about Yahiko's precious daughter having a boyfriend at the age of six. He didn't think Yahiko would let her date until she was thirty.  
  
Kaoru interrupted his thoughts, "So you gonna' be there? Cuz Daddy made me promise not to bite Johnny J. Jakes anymore if you were gonna' be there cuz they won't let me be a sheep if I bite him again."  
  
Illegal move, Kenji thought darkly. He changed the subject quickly. "What do you want for Christmas?" he asked. Her list was endless, almost ten minutes of things like Barbie convertible, Barbie Pony, Barbie Swimming pool, Doctor Barbie, and then she started on the Princesses. He grew dizzy listening to the list and began making his own list for her, Kendo Barbie, Karate Barbie complete with Nunchaku's[3] and sparring helmets, Dog Walking Barbie with her own plastic bags for cleaning up after puppy.  
  
"So are ya' coming?" She didn't forget he hadn't answered her either. She definitely was Yahiko's child, he thought. It's as if Tsubame didn't even participate in her birth. If he hadn't been there watching Tsubame grow round and happy, he'd think Yahiko birthed the brat himself.  
  
"So why are you biting Johnny whats-it?" He asked, curious at her abnormal action.  
  
She was quiet. He heard Tsubame in the background. "Kaoru, if you're done talking, hang up."  
  
"Ok, don't tell me. What's Shinta want for Christmas?" he asked, thinking he might as well avoid another phone call and find out what his four-year old nephew wanted at the same time.  
  
"A ho," she replied, cheerful again.  
  
"What?" Kenji asked, startled, thinking he hadn't heard right.  
  
"A ho with a red handle and a wheelie-row, and pumpkins" She recited his list exactly as four-year old Shinta said it.  
  
Kenji nodded with relief. "Shinta wants a hoe?" He asked, clarifying it for himself.  
  
"Here, talk to Mommy. Love ya' Kenji." He heard her set the phone on the counter and run to get her mother.  
  
It hurt to hear Tsubame's soft voice. Sometimes, she was the only other one who felt run over by the contact with the Kenshingumi. She had been more like a sister than a mother when he was growing up, always reminding him of how much his parents loved him, of how much she loved him. Fixing him his favorite food when his mother traveled with Kenshin, putting ice on his bruises when he lost to Yahiko once again, making him feel Kaoru kicking in her belly, sitting quietly next to him after telling him the news about his parents.  
  
"Kenji-kun?" Tsubame asked.  
  
"What does Shinta want for Christmas?"  
  
A soft sigh escaped her lips. "He wants gardening supplies- real ones, he says, not baby ones."  
  
Kenji laughed, startling both of them a little. He could just see Yahiko's face when Shinta asked for flower seeds instead of a bokken[4]. "So why is our little miss biting this boy? She wouldn't tell me."  
  
Two sighs in a row. Tsubame must be having a tough time right now with both kids, Kenji thought, not to mention all the preparation for a house full of company.  
  
"He said she was ugly."  
  
Kenji laughed loudly. Maybe there was a little of his mother in the child after all.  
  
"Are you coming home for Christmas? Sano's home from Pakistan next week. Everyone will be here, except you, dear."  
  
"I'm driving home for Christmas, yea"  
  
He pumped the gas in the raw Illinois winter air, blowing on his hands to warm them up, and hustled inside to pay for it.  
  
He could have been home already, if he hadn't been so stubborn. He could have gotten the ticket when Yahiko called and avoided this fifteen-hour trip, but he had convinced himself he wasn't giving in this year. "I can't, Tsubame," he had replied truthfully. After they hung up, he laughed again at Yahiko's male son wanting to grow flowers and his only daughter fighting the boys. There was an ache growing inside. He hung up and leaned against the wall, feeling more alone than he'd felt in a long time. After the tournament in January, he thought, I'll get a cat.  
  
"Well, I'm moving down that line"  
  
Back on the road, Kenji clicked on the radio. The day was gray and the rain started forming ice crystals, hitting the window shield with sharp tapping sound.  
  
Kenji went Christmas shopping for the required Barbie stuff and "real" gardening tools, telling himself if he bought it early, then he could ship everything so it'd be there for Christmas. In the girl aisle, he spotted this amazing little oven that cooked cakes and cookies. He grinned; thinking how much fun it'd be to see Yahiko's face when Shinta opened it Christmas morning. It went in the cart with the toys for Sano's boys and Kaoru's required Barbie stuff. He saw a beautiful pink scarf that reminded him of Tsubame, another blue one for Aunt Megumi, and before he knew it, he had a gift for everyone- everyone except Grandfather Hiko. He spent most of Yahiko's money on gifts for the Kenshimgumi without even thinking about it.  
  
"And it's been so long, but I will be there"  
  
He shifted lanes avoiding the slower traffic ahead of him, and slowed down for the construction ahead.  
  
He had resisted answering the phone calls of the other Kenshingumi, even Aunt Megumi's message didn't convince him to check Expedia for ticket prices. He didn't know he was making this trip until school got out and he found himself rattling restlessly around the apartment picking Shinta's Easy-Bake Oven and wanting to see Yahiko's face when the wrapping came off.  
  
He carried the wrapped presents down to his battered Toyota Corolla, packed his practice swords in their gear bag, and threw some clothes in a duffle bag. At the last minute he grabbed a hanger with dress clothes to wear to see little Kaoru being a sheep at the Pageant Christmas Eve. Before leaving Chicago, he drove down to the Asian market and picked up some imported sake for Grandfather.  
  
"It's gonna take some time, but I'll get there"  
  
Outside of Columbus, the Interstate clogged, and the traffic came to a screeching halt. He swerved to miss the bumper of the car in front of him and sat helplessly in the car.  
  
He'd been left in Yahiko's care since he was a child while his father traveled the world curing world hunger or some such nonsense with the Kenshin Foundation. Sano was running the Kenshin Foundation now, and he did almost as much traveling as Kenji's parents, setting up schools and health clinics in some of the poorest places on Earth.  
  
Yahiko had been more of a father than Kenshin had ever been. Kenshin, he thought, famous swordsman, famous humanitarian, terrible father. He thought of his father by his first name, because everyone in the family called him that. He had missed him so much when he left, but he'd always thought he'd return. Kenshin promised he'd come home and he'd kept his promise, but he returned too sick to stand upright. Kenji wiped away a tear straying from an eye and turned the radio up louder. He still hadn't gotten over the death of his parents from a bizarre illness his father brought home from some third-world country.  
  
"Top to toe in taillights, Oh I got red lights on the run"  
  
Two hours later, Kenji was around the traffic and driving toward Wheeling. The sleeting ice was turning into wet snow, and the snowplows were out keeping the road clear.  
  
Kenji didn't have any patience with people telling him about how they met his father in some odd-sounding country, how impressed they were with his work, how he'd changed their lives, and he met these oddballs everywhere. All wanting something he didn't have from him.  
  
The latest one was his professor of Politics and Ethics class. He knew he was in trouble when he picked up the syllabus and reading list last fall. Uncle Aoshi's books had been listed as the top three textbooks for the class. At least that saved Yahiko money since copies of Uncle Aoshi's books were always around the house. He was using copies of the latest one to hold up one corner of the sofa.  
  
The person before that was a visiting Sensei at the dojo where he trained daily. That was even worse than his professor at school. At least the professor hadn't put his name together with the man he quoted during every class, while the Sensei identified him by his sword work. The Sensei said he'd trained with Kenshin before he was famous, but Kenji thought he was lying. Kenshin refused to train anyone for years. He had refused to instruct Yahiko for years. Most of what Yahiko learned, he learned from Kenji's mother, and from watching Kenshin and Sanosuke fight. He'd have to ask Sano if he remembered a Sensei Chou training with Kenshin when he saw him at Christmas.  
  
"Driving home for Christmas"  
  
Through the construction on the PA turnpike, he felt his foot pressing down on the pedal, as if his body was in a hurry to finish the trip. He lifted up and slowed down, punching the cruise button when he was a little over the speed limit, well, ok, about ten miles faster than the speed limit.  
  
He remembered sitting on Kenshin's lap, watching Mommy and Yahiko exchange blows with the bokken and insults. Kenshin held him tight, and he felt warm and safe in his arms. He must have been Shinta's age. It was one of the rare memories he had of Kenshin, and he shook his head, trying to see through bleary eyes, wiping away the tears. They flowed faster than he could wipe them away. He wiped his face with the back of his shirtsleeve. He pulled over beside the road, sobbing his head on the steering wheel.  
  
He hadn't cried after he heard about Kenshin's death, so worried about his mother's illness and angry that Kenshin would put his mother's life at risk. He'd been angry with him for so long- for never being there, for refusing to teach him the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu, for leaving him behind. He cried forever before finally running out of tears. He hiccupped and used a napkin to blow his nose. He reached over and swallowed the last of the Coke in the bottle. He threw the bottle in the backseat and took a deep breath. Checking the rear view mirror, he pulled back out in traffic, four more hours and he'd be home.  
  
"Driving home for Christmas,  
With a thousand memories."  
  
He pulled up in front of the house and flipped off the engine, the music ending instantly. He looked at the brightly colored lights hanging from the eaves, glimmering under the snow; every window in the house was lit up. He could hear the laughter from inside the house here in his car. He counted the cars. The shiny red BMW must be Sano's newest vehicle. He hoped Sano wasn't having a middle-life crisis or something. Everybody was there already. He was the last to arrive, but he couldn't open the door. He sighed, starting the engine. I'll just drive back to school, he thought. Nobody knows I'm coming. They won't even miss me.  
  
He didn't see Kaoru watching him from the window, or Sano standing behind his car. He heard the bang of Sano's hand on the truck and jumped. Yahiko stood by the driver's side window, grinning, pulling the door open. He felt himself being yanked out of the car by his collar, and enveloped into a giant bear hug by Yahiko's strong arms, Sano beating on his back and calling him, "Baka." He was home with the Kenshingumi, and his clan wasn't letting go of him anytime soon. "Merry Christmas, Dad," he said to the bright star he spotted over Yahiko's back. "I love you."  
  
Author's notes: "Driving Home For Christmas" is a song sung by Chris Rea. It seemed like the perfect background song for Kenji as he made the emotional journey home. I hope you enjoyed it! ----------------------- [1] Grandfather in Japanese [2] The specific school of Kendo Kenshin learned as a child from his teacher, Hiko [3] Weapon used in Martial Arts [4] wooden sword used in Kendo 


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